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HP Printers - Print Jobs Stuck in Print Queue (Windows)

This document is for HP printers and computers with Windows.

The printer cannot print from a computer because a print job is stuck in the Windows print queue. This stuck print job cannot be cancelled or deleted and prevents further print jobs from printing. Clicking Cancel on the job in the queue, does nothing.

Figure : Example of a stuck job in queue that cannot be cancelled

This issue can occur due to a variety of reasons, such as power outages, but always involves the print job spooling process in Windows.

To resolve this problem, perform the steps in this support document to reset your printing environment and clear any corrupt jobs from the system.

If the printer is offline, print jobs remain in queue until the printer becomes active again. Open the print queue window and make sure Pause Printing or Use Printer Offline are not selected. If a checkmark displays next to either item, select the item to clear the checkmark and try printing again. If the problem persists, continue to the next step.

Whenever a print job is sent to the printer a file is created in Windows. Sometimes these files become corrupt and cause problems. To properly reset your printing environment, delete these print job files manually and restart both the computer and the printer.

Turn off the printer using the power button.

If you have any work open in the software you printing from, save your work. Your current print jobs will be lost and will need to be printed again later.

Search Windows for services, and click Services in the list of results.

Scroll through the list of services and find the name Print Spooler.

Right-click Print Spooler and select Stop.

Figure : Stop selection for Print Spooler Service

After the service has been stopped, close the service window and use Windows Explorer to browse to C:\Windows\System32\Spool\PRINTERS.

HP provides a free tool called HP Print and Scan Doctor to diagnose and resolve printing and scanning problems. Download and run HP Print and Scan Doctor () to quickly and automatically perform several troubleshooting tasks known to resolve this issue. When this link is clicked, HP Print and Scan Doctor is downloaded using your Internet browser's download capabilities.

If print jobs continue to get stuck when printing, reset the printing software system files by removing and reinstalling the print driver.

note:

If your computer is using Windows XP or earlier versions of Windows, do not use these steps. Instead, uninstall your printer software using the Add/Remove Programs list in Windows Control Panel. Install your printer software from either the printer installation disc, a full feature software download from HP's Web site (if available), or by adding the printer through Window's Add hardware feature (a built-in driver).

If your printer connects to the computer with a USB cable, disconnect the USB cable from the printer.

Search Windows for devices and click Devices and Printers in the list of results.

Temporarily disable the firewall software on your computer to see if it is interfering with the print job. This is most commonly accomplished by right-clicking the small system tray icon associated with your security software and then selecting Disable firewall or similar. After disabling the firewall clear the print queue and try printing again. If print jobs continue to get stuck, then the firewall is not part of the problem. If your printer prints, then adjust the firewall setting to allow the Windows print spooler service access to the system.

Restart the computer and log into a Windows using a different Windows account. If the printer works from another account, make sure the account you are trying to print from has the necessary permissions to print.